Shocking data shows almost 4,000 young arsonists investigated by police in just three years

Around a third of arson suspects identified by English and Welsh police forces were teenagers – or even younger.

A colossal blaze devastating moorland in Greater Manchester. The torching of a derelict nightclub on a busy Plymouth street. A Dungannon fire that left a family trapped inside their home. The senseless murder by fire of Marta Bednarczyk in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. These incidents, all of which occurred within recent weeks, have something in common.

They were all arson attacks committed by children.

A study by criminal injury law specialists Legal Expert has found that a third of all arson suspects in England and Wales are children or young people, with police forces saying that offenders between 2022 and 2024 were as young as just four years old.

Almost 4,000 young arsonists found

Legal Expert sent Freedom of Information requests to police forces across the UK, to which 30 forces from England and Wales responded with the age and gender of recorded suspects. Some presented the data in age brackets of differing sizes, while some noted the number of suspects who shared the same age.

Taking the number of under 18s from 21 forces, under 19s from another five and under 20s from four more, there were 3,884 young offenders in England and Wales investigated under suspicion of arson between January 2022 and December 2024.

This only accounts for the suspects who forces could track and put an age to–around 70% of investigations ended without a suspect even being identified, according to data seen by Legal Expert from multiple forces.

But the figure offers an insight into the significant youth presence in offender statistics. The 30 forces who shared suspect details were able to put an age to 11,370 individuals.

It means the youngest age group made up 34% of arson suspects in the past three years.

The areas hit hardest by underage fire-raisers

Young people were suspected or arrested all over the country. Greater Manchester Police said that among the cohort of suspects was a four-year-old child, while Essex Police said the age range of offenders started from five.

Northumbria Police, which said it noted one suspected arsonist aged ‘five and under’, had the largest tally of youthful potential offenders.

While the 429 people the force looked into included young adults aged up to 20, 296 of them were 15 years old at most. Young people made up 40% of the region’s suspect pool, with boys aged 11 to 15 alone accounting for a quarter of all suspects.

The trend was even more stark for Gwent Police. Operating in southeast Wales, the force found that 342 under-18s were under suspicion of arson, making up a colossal 60% of all suspects whose ages were put on record.

Kent Police said 331 people considered potential arsonists were 18 or under, while four seven-year-olds featured in West Midlands Police’s 328-strong list of under-18s.

Met Police provided details of arrested individuals rather than suspects, but found that only a small percentage (14%) were under the age of 20.

While dealing with a much lower number of cases, Wiltshire Police (58%) and North Yorkshire Police (54%) also had a disturbing proportion of underage arson suspects.

South Yorkshire Police shelved 10 potential prosecutions because the offender was under ten, the legal age of criminal responsibility. They were far from alone in doing so.

Youngest confirmed police suspects

• One four-year-old (Greater Manchester Police)
• One child aged “five & under” (Northumbria Police)
• At least one five-year-old (Essex Police)
• Four seven-year-olds (West Midlands Police)
• One seven-year-old (Dorset Police)
• Three people aged “under nine” (Avon & Somerset Police)
• Three nine-year-olds (Kent Police)

Prosecutions closed because the offender was “below the age of criminal responsibility”

• Ten in South Yorkshire
• Eight in Gwent
• Six in Avon & Somerset and West Yorkshire
• Four in Warwickshire and Sussex
• Two in South Wales
• One in Kent and Dorset

The reasons behind the numbers

“Why do children set fires?” London Fire Brigade asks in an informational page made available online for parents. LFB, which estimated that one in every four London fires is started by a young person, suggested: “Children and young people start to play with fire for various reasons, ranging from natural curiosity in toddlers to older children using firesetting to express feelings of anger or emotional distress.

“Without help and guidance, this ‘firesetting behaviour’ can increase and lead to more serious consequences – serious personal injury and damage to homes, schools and property.”

The Youth Endowment Fund’s 2024 ‘Children, violence and vulnerability’ survey asked young people why they committed violent crimes. Factors like self-defence and revenge were prominent, while 17% committed crimes “as part of a gang, neighbourhood or school rivalry.” Another 9% said they were pressured into it, while 8% agreed with the statement, “I find it hard to control my behaviour”.

6% admitted to committing a crime to “show off”, while 5%–including 22 children aged 13 who were surveyed–said they were influenced by drugs or alcohol.

To date, there has not been a prominent nationwide review of why arson attacks specifically are so often being carried out by children and young people.

Staggeringly few arsonists face charges

36 police forces across the UK told Legal Expert that they collectively investigated 65,053 arson offences between January 2022 and December 2024, an average of one arson attack every 25 minutes.

Data from 21 forces showed a number of arrests that was 16% of the offence total.

In a more comprehensive set of figures, 32 forces confirmed the number of cases leading to a charge. They showed that just 4.83% of cases led to perpetrators facing charges.

It means that an investigation into arson was around 14 times more likely to be closed because a suspect was unidentified than because they had been charged with the crime.

Met Police took on 6,411 arson investigations, the most in the country ahead of West Midlands Police (4,089) and West Yorkshire Police (3,929).

Arson victims mostly disappointed in search for compensation

Legal Expert found that 464 arson victims sought a payment through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), a government-supported agency, between 2022 and 2024. However, only 76 received a payment.

Those successful received a total of £102,260, working out at £1,345.53 per claim on average. Just £2,400 has been paid out so far for the 79 claims launched in 2024.

Less than 60% of claims have been resolved, leaving 194 people waiting to learn their fate.

Legal Expert criminal injury specialist Ellie Lamey said: “It’s incredible that so few people have made a claim when thousands and thousands of arson offences have affected lives around the country. With charge rates also being low, victims might be wondering how to get some form of justice.

“Victims who have sustained injuries, whether physical or psychological, due to violent crimes like arson have the right to seek compensation, and they don’t have to wait for someone to be charged or convicted of the offence to do so.

“As long as the crime is reported to the police and they cooperate with an investigation, victims can explore their chances of compensation through the CICA.

“We’ve helped many people who didn’t realise just how much they could receive by claiming with the support of an expert.”

Legal Expert is a 24/7 service which provides detailed guidance on criminal injury compensation claims, including CICA applications.

Through free consultations offered online and over the phone, it connects claimants with experienced criminal law experts.